Customer Reviews

Vegan Unplugged: A Pantry Cuisine Cookbook and Survival Guide

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These days there are oodles of vegan cookbooks on the market, yet I am amazed when ones such as this one still manage to carve a new niche. Vegan Unplugged is in fact so useful that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to my non-vegan comrades too. It covers ...

Preparing for Emergencies (earthquakes, hurricanes, power outages)
Road Trips
Hotel Stays (on a budget or a special diet with limited kitchen supplies)
Camping Cuisine
College and Dorm Room Cooking
Uncooks (you know who you are)
Being Resourceful with an Out of Commission Kitchen (Boy could my aunt and uncle have used this when they were living out of their basement and eating out every single night as their entire house was remodeled!)
An Empty Fridge and No Desire to Go Grocery Shopping (oh this happens all too often, doesn't it?)
These are the obvious uses, but I found one more use ...

... taking care of an overstocked pantry. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but, we are moving, a fair distance, and the last thing I want to do is pack up boxes full of pantry food. Noodles, nut butters, various types of rice, lentils, split peas, flours ... we are talking loads of heavy stuff here, and I want it gone within two months! My goal may be unrealistic, but with Vegan Unplugged, I am at least making a serious dent ...

Thus far I have made and we have enjoyed the Unplugged Peanut Noodles (a combination of the recipes for Rice Noodles with Spicy Peanut Sauce and Asian Noodle Salad with Peanut Dressing); Old Bay Chickpea Cakes; Sweet Treat Chocolate Truffles; and the Kitchen-Sink Cappelini (good base recipe to play around with.

Other recipes I am hoping to make from this book in the next month include the:

Jazzed-Up Jasmine Rice
Pantry Bulgur Pilaf
Suddenly Sushi
Hot and Sour Soup
Artichoke Dip
Red Pepper Walnut Spread
Tropical Energy Balls
Skillet Peach Crumble (for my freezer overflowing with peaches!)

The recipes were created by Robin Robertson, a true master of simple pantry recipes, as evidenced by several of her other titles (yeah, when you hit close to 20 vegan cookbooks, you could be considered an expert). But I have discussed the recipes enough. The backbone of Vegan Unplugged is written by the primary author, Jon Robertson (you guessed it, Robin's husband). Jon offers pages and pages of tips and checklists to help you prepare for unexpected events and even how to react to them when they occur. Once you are done with this book, you will likely have a full emergency kit and a perfectly stocked pantry. Unless you are like me of course, and trying to eat yourself out of house and home ... quite literally.

I had the good fortune to spot this new title as I was buying another cookbook, and bought it as well to have on hand in case of power outages. But I was curious about the recipes, so even with the power on, I've been having some fun trying them out.

The recipe titles are clever and intriguing, but the main thing is that they're simple and quick to make. While lining up the ingredients, it was fun to realize that I already had most of them in the pantry.

Last night, I made the Technicolor Dream Salad. This salad is ingenious and addictive and easy to make, although it does taste best served chilled, so refrigerate it if you have power (or put it in the ice chest for awhile if you don't). I also tried the Curry in a Hurry and the White Bean-Spinach Fritters with the same delicious results.

I'd definitely recommend this book to have on hand for emergencies, but it's also fantastic just to cook everyday meals from even when the power's on. The book's so inexpensive, I bought extra copies to give as gifts to friends.

Some time back, I found a copy of Apocalypse Chow by Jon & Robin Robertson in a used bookstore. It is a wonderful little book, with lots of practical suggestions for emergency preparedness, and recipes designed for use when one needs to eat from the pantry, or with minimal/no power. I have found the recipes very useful also for nights when I want to make something delicious with very little time or work or grocery shopping. It's really the perfect book for the budget conscious student or the busy office worker, even apart from the emergency planning aspect. Somehow, it never got the attention it deserved and went out of print. Thankfully, it has been re-issued in a new, updated, retitled edition. As this year has brought encounters with ice, fire, and flooding, the need to be prepared is high in my consciousness. Last night, we made Puttanesca in a Pinch - wonderful flavor, cheap, ingredients right out of the pantry, and ready in about 15 minutes. Vegan or not, don't miss this one.

Is the power out yet? ... the food in this book almost makes natural disasters alluring, but you don't have to wait for the power to go out to enjoy these easy-to-follow recipes for preparing meals with or without heat. It's giving me ideas for camping and for quick meals on the run, and if you know someone who is living in a dorm, send them this book so they can wow their college roommate! But seriously, since natural disasters really are no joke and are becoming more and more frequent, the survivalist in me is going to follow the directions for a Five-Day Meal Box to have ready in case of an emergency ... or a power outage. Thank you - I love this book!

All of the previous reviews are spot on! This book is amazing! I bought it because I too did not have electricity for a week a few years ago, and we subsisted on take-out food (we were lucky they had electricity!). Yes, we stocked up on stews and soups (we were not vegetarian at the time), but it turned out to be 80 degrees. None of that sounded appetizing so it languished as we ate out for every meal, every day. After reading that the author considers artichokes, roasted red peppers, capers and olives emergency food, I was sold.

However, my "emergencies" these days are different and look like this:

- Kids home sick for a week and can't make it to the store.
- Summertime and don't feel like dragging kids to store (where I say no 500 times).
- Just got back from vacation and have "nothing to eat."
- Are very busy and don't want to buy a bunch of fresh produce that will likely go bad.
- Last year had 2 blizzards back to back, I so wish I had this book then!
- Only have a few minutes between homework and evening activities and need to whip up a good meal.

Just after getting this book and marking no fewer than 10 recipes that I already had the ingredients in my pantry, and doing a very small trip to supplement that, both my kids came down with strep throat, one after another. As soon as they got well, we were hit with a snow storm. I wasn't able to go to the store for over 2 weeks. We ate like royalty this whole time! Sure, my husband probably could have helped out, but I didn't let him because I was so eager to try these recipes (there isn't ONE recipe in the book I don't want to make). This is what we tried:

Samosadillas- husband especially loved this! Kids thought it was too spicy so will add spice at the end next time.
Old Bay Chickpea Cakes- delicious! The flavor was to die for.
Polenta Fiesta- something went wrong with my polenta (my fault, it didn't brown but got mushy instead), but the topping was delicious!
Puttanesca in a Pinch - felt like I was in a 5 star restaurant. Took out kids portion before adding olives and everyone was happy.
Pasta with Creamy Pumpkin Sauce and Walnuts - my parents unexpectedly came over for dinner and I made this and they were very impressed. Used canned pumpkin that had been in my pantry for a while and candied walnuts I already had on hand from Trader Joe's and it was amazing.
Last Resort Lasagna - I was so skeptical about this but it actually worked. I did need to open another jar of sauce though because the sauce soaked in.
Couscous Unplugged - made this for my lunch and OMG delicious! Ate it for days. Would be great for summer time.
Artichoke, Shiitake, and White Bean Soup - made this for my lunch also because no one else likes artichokes or mushrooms (weird people!), and again I felt like I was at a 5 star restaurant! So easy too. Used dried mushrooms for this, not canned.
Comforting Corn Chowder - best I've ever had. Used fresh potato since I had it.
Tropical Energy Balls - just made this and it is such a healthy treat.
Skillet Peach Crumble - my family loved this! Next time I may put the pan under the broiler to crisp up the topping, but it tasted great as is.

I've literally never gotten a cookbook and made this many recipes in such a short period of time. I have many more I'm dying to try. It also opened me up to being creative using other ingredients I had on hand, so my two weeks stuck at home I was not suffering.

I know I'm going on and on about the recipes, but the rest of the book is jam packed with useful and entertaining information. He covers all of the bases from equipment needed to pet care, to stress reduction. I'm anxious to get my emergency box done and really work on my pantry stash. The above was using mostly what I already had on hand, and I can imagine how comforting it would be to know I have literally weeks worth of great meals available if I need it. These meals are very inexpensive and healthy as well.

This is such a gift of a book whether you are vegan or not. Can you tell I love, love, LOVE this book!?

I have to rave about this cookbook. I absolutely love it! It's fantastic. Freaking fantastic. Love it, love it, love it.

It's totally clever -- the author's wife is a gourmet vegan chef (Robin Robertson) and they live in hurricane country so they have long-term power outages at times and wanted to still eat well. But more than that, it's just quick, easy, good food. Why on earth would I spend 45 minutes making fake meat patties when I can mash up a handful of things in 2 minutes and grill up really tasty black bean and potato patties???? And it's all real food, not fake meats, not chemicals and additives. And the desserts.... yum. Instant Gratification Chocolate Pie? Truffles I can make in 2 minutes? Did I mention I love it? :)

So far I've tried 3 recipes and all were delicious. The "Beat the Blahs Black Bean Patties" were so simple, quick and tasty (and all natural) that I'll never buy a frozen veggie patty again. And how could you not love a cookbook that includes a recipe for "Shiitake Happens Mushroom Soup"? ;)

I highly recommend Vegan Unplugged. I usually do NOT like vegan cookbooks even though I cook a fair amount of vegan dishes (they usually use too many fake ingredients, have too many acquired tastes or they're just too time consuming for me), but I love this one.

Vegan Unplugged is my hands-down new favorite vegan cookbook. I can't wait to try some more of the recipes next time we're camping -- and just next time I want to make a quick, easy dinner (or breakfast, lunch, soup, snack or dessert!).

I love this cookbook! I typically cook gourmet meals from scratch using fresh vegetables and fruits, tofu, tempeh and beans. But I also have an active toddler son, my husband and I are currently unemployed and running between temp jobs, interviews and taking care of the baby has put some stress on our time and energy for cooking. Add to this I can't eat gluten which means eating in is a requirement much of the time. While we are flexitarians I am trying to cook more vegetarian/vegan meals for health, cost and environmental considerations. Also, I can't stand looking at my baby boy's beautiful blue eyes and telling him that we love some animals and eat others. For many years I have collected up old cookbooks and have used many a pantry meal to get dinner on the table in 15-20 minutes. But then we began eating more vegetarian and I was having trouble figuring out how to use my pantry stash as effectively for vegetarian meals. Enter Vegan Unplugged! The recipes are fast, easy, taste really great( my toddler loves them!)and they spurred my imagination to create my own pantry based meals. Due to the gluten intolerance,it has been years since I have been able to eat a samosa and the samosadillas when made with GF teff tortillas were just like I remembered. I highly recommend this cookbook for anyone! The recipes are easy enough for anyone to do even people who burn tv dinners and inspiring for gourmets who may be tired and not up to making that 50 step casserole and don't want pizza. I LOVE this cookbook! Everyone could use this cookbook! Vegan Unplugged: A Pantry Cuisine Cookbook and Survival Guide

I bought this book to give to my parents who are spend months at a time on their 36 foot sailboat, but I have to admit I never gave it to them...I started reading it at home and became hooked. This book is not only practical and written in a charming way, but its full of surprises.

For example, not only does walk you through step by step how to prepare for natural disasters or power outages, but it help will help you deal with disasters in style. It is amazing what delicacies you can prepare with a portable butane stove! There are even different ethnic recipes....Indian, Latino, Middle Eastern...

I really liked all the practical information about things like all the different ways to make fires, whether its with a camping stove or a gas grill or a wood fire or even "solar cookers" which I had never heard about.

Every time I open up this book, I think of someone else who could use it. I need it for myself because my kitchen is sorely under-equipped, my parents need it for their boating trips, my friend needs it for camping, my brother the survivalist needs it for the next global calamity.... And that's just taking the first part of the book into consideration because that's the section that explains how to deal with a broad array of things that will come up when we don't have access to all the modern conveniences we've come to depend upon in a standard kitchen.

But in addition to all of that, the recipes are really clever and fun! Like "Polenta Fiesta" and "Layered Tortilla Skillet" and "Use-it-up Minestrone Soup" (anyone who's lived through an extended power-outage can relate to that one).

It even has desserts like No fuss Chocolate Fondue and Ginger-Walnut Rum Balls -- for real! How could a black out NOT turn into a party if there were Ginger Walnut Rum Balls?

This book would be a great gift if it wasn't so hard to give it away.

A wonderfully compact book, this cookbook has solid, great-tasting, easy recipes that can be made in any number of situations, including when the power is out. Besides the recipes, one of my favorite things about the book is the "Going Global" section which shows how to add some excitement to your pantry stash. It's broken down into Indian, Middle Eastern, Latino, Asian and Italian, making it easy to to put together just a few ingredients and get a delicsious result. This cookbook would be handy for anyone with a limited amount of time or space, as well. College students, for example, would benefit from this by using some of the 'recipe upgrades' provided. As the book suggests, it would also be handy for campers, boaters, or those on roadtrips.

This book is unique and really wonderful! I am so glad I have it. It is filled with genuinely useful information about preparing for a power outage, and what do you while you're in one. The list of ingredients to have in your preparedness box is so inventive - who would have thought to put, for example, kalamata olives, sundried tomatoes, and veggie bullion cubes in your box? But all these ingredients and their other ideas will add a lot to the experience. Great advice about cooking equipment too. As this book points out also, these recipe ideas will work for a lot of other situations besides just weather-related power outages, such as traveling, being home sick and not wanting to shop, and dorm rooms. The recipes are a HUGE step up from opening a can of green beans!! They are inspired by Asian, Middle Eastern, Latin, and Asian flavors. How about curries, pilafs, stir fries, salads, and homemade soups, with desserts like rum balls and chocolate pie to finish it off? All from a pantry box. The authors write from experience - they lived through a week-long power outage following an East Coast hurricane. Even if you are not a cookbook buyer, this is one that belongs on every bookshelf. I am planning to buy more copies to give away to friends!